Side dish: Rice Balls

This recipe is actually called "Brown Rice Risotto Suppli." I got it from The New Whole Grains Cookbook by Robin Asbell. However, my family loved it and called it Rice Balls. For weeks after I first made it, I was asked to make it again. So, it goes into our Recipe Codex as "Rice Balls" because that's what we call it. According to Asbell, "Suppli in its original form is a way to use up leftover risotto, and you can make it with any cooked sticky grain." In that light, the first part of the recipe is to make a sticky brown rice. However, if you have leftover risotto, you can just use that. The original recipe also had a creamy spinach sauce. I knew no one in my family would touch it, so I abstained from making it.

Ingredients:

Sticky Brown Rice (Risotto)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup minced onion

1 cup short-grained brown rice

3 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Suppli

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour or unbleached white flour

3 eggs, beaten

2 cups whole wheat panko or dry breadcrumbs

1/2 cup olive oil

Directions:
Risotto

1. To make the risotto, in a 4-quart saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, heat the olive oil.
2. Saute the onion over medium heat until soft and clear. 
3. Add the rice, and stir to coat thoroughly. 
4. Add 2 cups of the stock and the salt, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. 
5. Uncover, and begin stirring in more stock as needed to make a soft, sticky risotto. Keep cooking and stirring after each addition until you have a thick texture. Take the pan off the heat, add the Parmesan and tomatoes, and chill.

Suppli

1. To assemble the suppli, form the cold risotto into balls, using 2 tablespoons for each one. Dredge them in the flour then the egg, then the crumbs. 
2. Heat the oil in a large saute pan until it shimmers, and fry the suppli until golden, about 3 minutes per side. 
3. Drain on paper towels, and serve hot.

Other Details:

• For a simpler cooking process, it can be made into one large, flat cake, instead of little balls. 
• Panko is better but use regular breadcrumbs if you can't find it.
• Makes about 18 suppli, 4 servings
• Nutrition is per Rice Ball
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